Untouchable
by Kaiki-Ayamaru
Summary: Yuffentine fluff. ^_^ Rated PG-13 for future chapters. First chpt is short, slight Lucrecia-bashing in the second chpt, gory in the third. R&R!
1. The Little Town Of Nibelheim

Disclaimer : Kaiki-Chan, the author, does not own Squaresoft, Final Fantasy, or any of the characters involved. Arigatou. ^_^  
  
"Sheesh, its freezing!" Yuffie Kisaragi shivered to herself, as she trudged through the snowy slopes of Mt. Nibel. It had only been around six months since Meteor almost destroyed the planet, and Yuffie was grateful that it was all over. She hated having all that responsibility. Gotta save the world. Gotta beat that guy Sephiroth up, so he doesn't destroy the world. Blah, blah, blah.  
  
Truth be told, she did miss her friends, since she hadn't seen them since they parted ways. She remembered hearing news about all of them. Cid had finally got up off his lazy butt, and asked Shera to marry him. She happily obliged. Tifa and Cloud were different, though. They were still close friends, but neither of them had the guts to show how much they loved each- other. Nanaki went back to Cosmo Canyon, and was awarded the title of chief. Yuffie grinned to herself, remembering how she used to pick on the fiery-furred intellectual. Barret had gone back to Corel, with Marlene, and tried to help the townspeople fix the place up. She heard it had been going well, so far. Cait Sith-- Oh, wait. Reeve, went back to work for Shinra, getting a well-deserved promotion as President, seeing as nobody saw Scarlet or Heidegger fit enough to support such a huge company. Then.. There was Vincent. She heard he had moved to the weird waterfall thing, but returned to the Shinra mansion in Nibelheim, a few months later. Yuffie frowned, as she hopped over a fallen, icicle-adorned tree-trunk. Vinnie was such a downer. So morbid, and moody. She knew why, but she didn't know why he made such a big deal out of it.  
  
She wondered again, why she was here, freezing her butt off, and shuffling through mounds of cold snow. The simplest thing brought her back to her senses. The Full-Cure Materia, right? There seemed to be a weird virus floating around Wutai, infecting random people as it went. Anyway, the last time she checked, Vincent had it equipped. She hoped he hadn't sold it off to someone. Letting her mind wander, Yuffie stumbled over to the edge of a small cliff, standing on her toes, on one of the rocks. She pulled a hand to her forehead, and wiped the sweat off it. She glanced out. "Check out that view.. " She said to herself, looking out over Nibelheim. The sun was just rising over comfortably-built structures of the town, letting off a pleasant, orange glow, under the darkness of the snowy, silent peaks. "Hope I didn't come down here for nothing.. " She muttered, hopping off the rock, and jogging the rest of her way down the mountain path.  
  
Quickly, she reached the bottom, and scuttled her cold, bare legs down the dewy path. She stopped again, momentarily, by the gates of the old mansion. So big and shadowy.. It freaked her out. Shuddering, she scuttled off again, towards the entrance of the local Inn. Everything had changed. Nibelheim was re-populated, with travellers, and some other folk, and the clones disappeared somewhere. But it seemed to be a nice little town, again. Yuffie placed a hand on the door-knob to the Inn, and gave it a violent twist. She barged in, and shakily, made her way to the desk, where a young, blonde-haired woman looked up at her cold, pink cheeks. "Can I help you?" She said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Uh.. Yeah, I'd like a room, please." Yuffie shivered again, glancing around at the warm Inn. "For one?" The woman inquired, reaching for her pen. "Yes, please." Yuffie said, itching to get into a warm bed. She hadn't slept in two days, trying to get to Nibelheim as fast as she humanly could.  
  
"That will be.. 100 gil, please." Yuffie shoved a hand into her pocket, digged around for a while, and scrounged up enough. The woman took the cold cash, and deposited it into a register, under the desk. She nodded to Yuffie, and pointed to the stairs. "Third on your right." She said, before getting back to her usual business.  
  
Yuffie scuttled over to the stairs, and skipped up them. As quick as she could, she bounded into the warm Inn room, and clicked the door shut, behind her. She exhaled, loudly, as if she was unleashing a tense ball of stress. Yuffie plopped down on the nearby bed, and yawned. "I'll get the Materia tomorrow.. I need some sleep." She murmured to herself, before laying her head on the pillow, and hoisting her legs up, onto the bed. Pulling up the blankets, Yuffie thought about Vincent. Would he be cranky? Would he ignore her? Would he remember her? 'He might not even let me borrow the Materia..' was the last thought that wandered into her head, before she drifted off, into a peaceful slumber.  
  
Kaiki-Chan's last note! : My first semi-serious, soon-to-be-fluffy Yuffentine fic! I hope I did good! R&R! Flames are welcome! Arigatou! ^_~ 


	2. I Can Feel Your Heartbeat

Disclaimer : Kaiki-Chan does not own Final Fantasy, Squaresoft, or any of the characters involved. ^_^ Arigatou.  
  
She opened her eyes, drowsily, focusing on the ceiling. "Urrghh.." Yuffie groaned, in a sleepy annoyance. She'd never been a morning person. Hesitantly, she hauled herself out of the warm bed, and shuffled over to the en-suite bathroom. After taking a warm shower, brushing her teeth, dressing, and hauling a heavy coat over her shoulders, she headed downstairs. Yawning, she said a quick goodbye to the Inn-keeper, and trudged outside. The coldness from the peaks ahead drifted through the air. Luckily, the coat protected her from any nasty drifts. Hurriedly, she trudged over to the gates of the Shinra mansion. Turning on her side, she forced the old, rusting gates open with her shoulders. With a loud creak, they opened, and she let herself in. Sheepishly, she headed over to the door, and hammered on it, with a gloved wrist. She waited. Waiting.. Waiting.. Waiting.. 'Come on, Vincent.. Open the door, already!' she thought, hammering some more.  
  
Vincent ears perked, upon hearing the loud sound upon his door. He raised his dark eyebrows, wondering who on Earth would visit a beast like him? Maybe somebody had come to evict him? No, that couldn't be it.. Everybody was scared of him. He couldn't possibly think of anyone important, so he sat back in his chair, and started reading again.  
  
"Gawd.. Whats he doing, in there?" Yuffie said, out loud, before stomping down the side of the house, looking for a window. To her dismay, she didn't find any. Muttering to herself, she tried again. 'Ah-hah! There you are!' Yuffie triumphed, upon finding a very low window, that looked like it came from a Basement of some sort. Using her Ninja prowess, she pried the window open, and slid down, into the room. Blinking, she tried to focus, in the pitch-black darkness. Yuffie fumbled around, in the darkness, wondering if Vincent had even installed light-switches. All of a sudden, her hand met a solid, warm, and soft wall. She felt something.. Was it a heart beating? Yuffie kept her palm flat on the barrier, and listened. Then, a light switched on. She snapped out of the weird trance, and looked upon the subtle confusion that had etched itself onto the face of Vincent Valentine.  
  
"Uh.. Hey, Vinnie!" Yuffie cheered, snatching her hand back quickly. "Yuffie.. What are you doing here?" Vincent asked, raising his arms in order to fold them across his chest. "Uhh.. I came to ask you something!" Yuffie blinked, wondering if Vincent was going to listen. "You remember back when we fought Sephiroth, you had that Full-Cure Materia equipped, right?" Yuffie probed the subject, as Vincent nodded, in affirmation. "What do you need it for?" Vincent asked, switching his weight to his other foot. "Theres a virus-thingy-ma-jigger in Wutai. We haven't got any medicine left, and Godo sent me to find a Full-Cure Materia. I didn't know where to look first, then I remembered that you had one." Yuffie kept probing, and finally asked; "Can I borrow it? Puh-lease?" Vincent was quiet, for a moment, before tapping his foot against the hard ground, and wondering. "Alright.." He said, turning on his heel, and taking off, up the stairs, with his crimson cape billowing behind him. Yuffie sheepishly followed.  
  
Vincent led Yuffie up the stairs, and into a large room, with a dining table in the middle, many dusty chairs, and a piano with two legs in the corner. Yuffie wrinkled her nose, at the musty scent. "Sheesh! Guess you never did any renovating, huh?" she joked, glancing around with her fingers held over her nostrils. Vincent stayed quiet, before heading over to a small, rusty white filing cabinet. Yuffie peeked over his shoulder. There in the cabinet, lay a red velvet cushion, and three small colored orbs on top. Red, and two soft greens. Yuffie poked at the red Materia. "Which one is this?" She inquired, before getting her hand shoo'ed away, by Vincent. "That is Odin." He said, in a half-hushed voice, as he selected the green Materia on his right, and handed it to her.. "This is Full-Cure. Now.. I need this back, as soon as possible." Vincent hurried Yuffie along, after she accepted the Materia, and led her to the front-door.  
  
A cruel idea popped into Yuffie's head, as she was bullied out of the old house. "Hey, Vinnie.. Wanna come with me? You'd get your Materia back faster!" Yuffie hid a mischievous grin, and prodded him in the chest. "No." Vincent said, getting impatient. Yuffie popped her best puppy-dog eyes. "Come on.. Please? I might get attacked by a monster! Who's gonna protect me then, huh?! Would you be able to LIVE with that?! You forced Yuffie Kisaragi, Best ninja EVER, out in the cold! With all those mean monsters!" Vincent stared at her, with his piercing red eyes. "No." He repeated, his patience wearing thin by the second. ".. What are you gonna do here, anyway?" Yuffie said, prodding him in the chest, for the second time. "Nothing. Now, go." Vincent pushed her out the door, and slammed it shut, behind him.  
  
"Aww.. Vinnie, you meanie!" Yuffie kicked the door, and slumped back to the gates. At least she had the Materia.. But something wasn't right. She kind of wanted Vincent to come with her. She felt obliged to make him feel happier. She knew he hadn't met anybody since the incident, and he wouldn't have another breaking-and-entering for a very, very long time. Yuffie sulked, and clicked the gates open. She slowly headed out of the strange man's property, and miserably headed up the same mountain path she had trudged down, just seven hours before. She remembered what it felt like to have touched him. She didn't expect him to be so warm and sturdy.. He always looked so frail. His heartbeat was normal too. He wasn't as much as a freak as he thought he was. At least he -had- a heart.  
  
Yuffie looked at the ground as she walked, up the winding mountain path, and up to the bridge. Carefully, she set out across it, looking at the pearly green Materia, in her right palm. She had hoped to have some company, on the week-long journey. But, no. Mean old Vincent was never nice enough to plod along with anyone. She remembered what he'd said, at Da Chao, when that bastard Corneo had her tied up against the statue. Did he notice how much it hurt her, when he'd said it? So what, she'd stolen their Materia.. But they got it back, right? She figured she should stop thinking about it. Strangely, the headstrong ninja felt as if she were about to cry. And thats not a good sign, for Yuffie Kisaragi.  
  
Vincent had just slammed the door in the face of the possibility of actually having the company of someone he knew. He cast his eyes to the floor. 'Another sin..A star so bright shouldn't have even bothered with a freak, twice her age..' Vincent thought to himself, miserably. Secretly, he yearned for the old days, when he adventured with his "friends". He missed them so much. They hadn't even bothered to keep in contact with him. Except for Yuffie.. She had sent him letters, from Wutai. He remembered them well, and had them hidden under a loose floorboard. He never replied, either.. She just kept sending them.  
  
'Why am I so stubborn?' Vincent's inner-voice asked himself. Yuffie was an angel. So positive, even when times were low enough that everybody else seemed to have lost their minds. Lucrecia.. She was never like that. Its as if she tried to follow the crowd, pretending not to care. 'Curse me.. Thats another to my list of sins.. My angel.. Lucrecia..' Vincent never seemed to realize. Lucrecia was gone. Nobody could ever replace her. Vincent left his thoughts behind, and walked, slowly, to the room with the piano. Swiftly, he seated himself at the head of the dining table, and rested his elbows on it. 'Perhaps.. I should go with the bright one. If I lost her to the hands of a beast, I could never forgive myself..' Vincent decided, and stood back up.  
  
Quickly, he moved over to the cabinet, snatched up the Materia, and equipped them in the remaining empty slots in his gun, and his accessory. As quick as he could, he reached the door, flung it open, and sprinted to the gate. He proceeded to fumble with it, unlocking the rusty contraption. Being as impatient as can be, he left his home, and began to walk the long, mountain path ahead.  
  
Kaiki-Chan's last note! : ^_^ Thankoo for reading. The sample of fluff was my finest, I think. Anyway, forgive if the story is too typical, but I was itching to write a Yuffentine. R&R! And, if anyone's wondering, the flame- welcoming is a part of how I build my writing ability. ^_^ Constructive flames are what I can learn from. Stupid flames are fun to laugh at. Anyways, arigatou! 


	3. My Hero

Disclaimer : Kaiki-Chan does not own Squaresoft, Final Fantasy, or any of the characters involved. Kaiki-Chan's only possessions are a funny-looking ring, a spiked wrist band, and a mis-shapen hair-do. Also, Kaiki-Chan has realized that her paragraphing was totally random, and made her feel stupid. So, she has changed it to be a little more easily readible. ^_^ Arigatou!  
  
Yuffie had been travelling for around a day, now. Her legs were weary, and her arms were heavy. She wanted company, dammit. If she'd persuaded Vincent to come.. Okay. Fair enough. It wouldn't have made much of a difference, but at least it'd be something. She pouted. Travelling alone was -so- boring. She missed the days when her and the others used to explore different places, looking for a guy in a black cape.. Then battling strong monsters.. And-- Yuffie's thoughts were cut-off, as she stood, rooted to the spot.  
  
The snarling Nibel-wolf was foaming at the mouth, ahead of her. A few seconds after, a rustling in the bushes occured. Five more of the Nibel- wolves made their presence known, their demonic red eyes staring at Yuffie's petrified form, as she stood there, unsure of what to do. Carefully, Yuffie took an anxious step forward. The wolves saw this as an immediate threat. They rushed forward, barrelling into Yuffie at an incredible speed. She reached for The Conformer, that usually hung from her belt.. Wait. Where -was- her weapon? Yuffie struggled, and forced one of the hungry wolves off of her, while the others continued to rip at her clothes and belongings. She spun around, spying the edge of the Conformer poking out from behind a rock. 'Dammit..' Yuffie thought, still trying to force the wolves off of her vulnerable, defenceless form.  
  
Vincent's long, powerful stride had gained him an immense amount of time. He didn't sleep, either. He had passed what looked like Yuffie's camping site for the night before, about an hour ago. He urged himself on. He started to think about how Yuffie had been. From what he'd read about in her letters was mostly about Godo, and how he "enjoyed" bossing her around. Free spirits are free spirits, Vincent told himself. He knew Godo couldn't control her, even when she had taken initiative to volunteer to find the Full-Cure the town needed. He wondered how Yuffie could stand up to such a man. He reminded himself that Yuffie was certainly not like Aeris or Tifa. Yuffie wouldn't be caught dead going along with everyone else. She always had to do things by herself. He admired her, for that. Soon, it made him wonder how well they'd get along, now. Had she changed, in just six months? He wondered if that was possible. Vincent's thoughts were soon interrupted, by a haunting scream. Instinctively, he took off, into a run, in the direction of the scream.  
  
Yuffie bit and smacked at the wolves, but it was no use. She tried and tried, throwing punches and kicks, but the wolves always came back for more. She felt blood leaking, and a searing pain, from her stomach region. 'No! Not now! Don't do this to me!' The young girl screamed, before her eyes became heavy, and she began to feel dizzy...  
  
Vincent hurried, as fast as he could, darting past fallen trees, jagged rocks, and the tough and typical Nibel Pass. His ears had perked, since the scream. He stopped, abruptly, completely still. He listened. There was a whimper, and a small yelp. Vincent's ears traced the direction, and his eyes fell to a small area, directly down from the cliff that was a few metres away. He hurried over to the cliff, crouched low, and saw what he would have nightmares for, for the next millenia. There was Yuffie, her short, delicate form, laying on the dirty ground. Her eyes were closed, and her mouth was open, just slightly. But the worst.. The right side of her stomach looked like it had been lashed and bitten at, and blood was still seeping out of it. Her clothes were torn, she was covered in scratches and bite-marks. The look of horror on Vincent's face faded, and was replaced with one of anger, as he sighted the pack of Nibel-wolves.  
  
He felt a burning, tingling sensation all over his body, as he stood up, and yelled, into the crisp, dewy air. Vincent's concealed arms began to bulge, and grow into hideous muscles. His skin faded, and gradually turned a deep violet, as short, course fur began to grow, all over his body. Wings exploded from his shoulder-blades, and horns out of his head did the same. Soon, the torn clothes of Vincent lay discarded on the ground, as the Galian Beast took a step forward, sliding down the rocky cliff. He bellowed a loud roar, his free mind losing control. The violet beast reached a solid, flat surface, and took off into a sprint, in the wolves' direction, roaring all the while.  
  
The demon charged at the wolves, and managed to skewer one of the fiends on his right, piercing horns. The creature yelped, before it's untimely end. The beast glared at the other wolves, for a short moment. Five.. Four.. Three.. Two.. One..  
  
The living wolves took off, with their tails behind their legs.  
  
The beast removed the dead wolf from it's horn, and tossed it aside. Carefully, it stomped over to the unconscious girl, behind him. Slowly, the violet monstrosity bent down, and sniffed the girl's face. Miraculously, the tiny girl opened her cerulean eyes, and looked into the violet beast's. Before long, Yuffie's head fell backwards, as she slipped into unconsciousness, yet again. The beast began to shrink, slowly, and gained his original, fur-free complexion. His naked body returned to normal, and the wings and horns shrunk back, into his skeleton. Vincent was drained. His very energy had depleted, but he knew he had to stand up. He did, although with alot of pain, and some dizziness. With immense difficulty, Vincent dressed in the last torn bits of his clothes, ripped off a little of his untouched cape, and applied pressure to Yuffie's wound. After this, he reached his arms down, and out towards Yuffie. He slipped his arms around her scarred and tattered body, and lifted her into the security of his arms. Slow and limping, Vincent resumed the journey.  
  
Kaiki-Chan's last note! : Thank-you for reading. Thanks for all the positive reviews, too! I hope this chapter isn't somewhat of a let-down. I hope the goriness of Yuffie and anger of Vincent wasn't too OOC, but I tried my hardest. Also, I don't think Cure3 or Full-Cure would be able to heal Yuffie's wound, so I improvised in a more realistic way, I guess. Arigatou, nice people! ^_^ Don't forget to review! 


	4. The Struggle

Disclaimer : Kaiki-Chan does not own Squaresoft, Final Fantasy, or any of the characters involved. She wishes she did, though. Right now, a cell- phone on it's last legs has been added to her possessions. ^_^ Arigatou.  
  
The sun's orange and yellow radiance was half-way gone. The pink shade blanketing the sky was strong, and the air's soft warmth was coming to a gentle close. Soon, the sun would completely disappear, and the sky would become a dark blue-ish black, save for the twinkling stars, and the moon as a magnificent beacon. The two had been travelling two days, non-stop. The raven-haired man was still limping, his ankle being mildly sprained, during the slide down the cliff. The cerulean-eyed girl was still in a comatose state, having lost quite a bit of blood from the wound on her side. Vincent clutched Yuffie to him, desperately hoping for her to hold on.  
  
'Just a little longer..' He thought, glancing to the blood-soaked cloth tied around Yuffie's middle. She'd stopped bleeding quite a while ago, but she was still lost in the pitch-black trance that is unconsciousness. Vincent kept hobbling along, until he reached a fork in the path, at the head of which an old, tattered, wooden sign said;  
  
"Rocket Town is left, North Corel is right."  
  
Vincent mentally nodded, and continued on, going right.  
  
'I will not fail you, Yuffie. Your bright spirit won't fizzle out, while I'm still here.' Vincent reassured himself, and limped on. He marked another sin to his list. He felt protective of the girl. Not in a paternal way, or a platonic way. It was.. Different. He'd never felt this kind of worry, before. He felt like giving up, screaming and crying. As dramatic as it sounded. But something had kept him going. The nagging voice of Yuffie, in the back of his head.  
  
'C'mon, Vinnie! Move your butt already!'  
  
Vincent grinned, and mentally kicked himself. It was time to check on her pulse, just in case. He clutched her limp body with one arm, and gently pursed two fingers to the side of her neck. Beat.. Beat.. There it was. Oddly, Vincent began to predict the time between the beats, and began humming a song he'd heard once, from a long time ago. He couldn't remember where he'd heard it, but it was beautiful. It was a calm, serene song, sung by one with a heavenly voice. He had dismissed it as an angel, singing from the heavens. He knew it wasn't Tifa or Aeris, because he could see them from across the cockpit of the Highwind, and their mouthes weren't moving. He presumed Yuffie had slunk off somewhere, to be sick.  
  
Yuffie couldn't possibly have sung the angelic song.. It was too feminine a thing for someone like Yuffie to do. Vincent questioned himself. Did he really know Yuffie that well? He'd hardly ever talked to her. Maybe it was the letters that let him interpret her personality. Soon, he stopped humming, and removed his gentle fingers from the side of Yuffie's soft neck, cradling her once again, with two arms. A devious thought popped into his head, then.  
  
'Her neck.. It's so soft.. Too soft..'  
  
Vincent shook his head. If he touched her skin again, his list of sins would explode. She was a bright angel, who was not to be touched. Especially by a demonic freak, like himself. He dismissed his thoughts, and concentrated on moving on, despite his heavy fatigue.  
  
Yuffie opened her eyes. She was floating in the ocean.. But why was it so dark? She couldn't see a thing. She tasted salty water on her lips, and all she could hear was the soft lapping of water against her body. Soon, her body became heavy. It began to sink, into the pitch-black waters of the mysterious ocean. She found she could still breath, but with a very heavy burden on her chest. She summoned up all her strength, and tried to scream. Nothing happened. She couldn't even hear herself make a squeak. She tried to swim. Well, at least that worked. She moved her arms and legs, and began to swim, albeit heavily. She looked down. There wasn't any footing. Nothing.. No sand, no rocks, no plant-life, no marine-life.. Nothing. Just water.. She kept swimming, feeling pained and fatigued. She wondered if she'd ever find a way back to some kind of shore..  
  
Vincent was so tired. Now, he'd been walking for five days, non-stop. He needed sleep, and food. All his water had been demolished. His ankle had swollen up, and his head throbbed with immense pain.. But he put it out of his mind. He had to get Yuffie to a doctor, in the closest place possible. Two hours passed, of limping. Then, a glimmer of hope presented itself. Rocket Town.. There it was. Just a little bit more.. He made a last-ditch attempt to get to the town. He began running, with his swollen ankle. He yelled, in case anybody could hear him. He shouted;  
  
"We need a doctor! We need a doctor!"  
  
The townspeople looked ahead, and saw a man with torn clothes and long hair, carrying a young girl. Two of the townspeople alerted the others, and began running to meet the foreign couple.  
  
Vincent's legs were hardening. His limbs were that of stone, now. He tried so hard, just to get to the town. A few people were running towards him.. Suddenly, he couldn't breath. His limbs broke out from under him, and he fell. Yuffie's body rolled out of his arms, as he fell, flat on his face.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Kaiki-Chan's last note! : Cliff-hanger, to leave you all shaking in your fluffy little slippers. ^_^ Don't worry though. Vincent's okay. Its amazing what sleep and food deprivation can do to you, though. x_x Anyway! R&R~! 


	5. Return To Me

Disclaimer: Kaiki-Chan doesn't own Squaresoft, Final Fantasy, or any of the characters involved. Anou. If you sue me, I'll beat you to death with my pickle!  
  
"Is he going to be alright?"  
  
A female squeak popped out of the offending shadow's lips.  
  
"He just needs rest."  
  
Another voice echoed, this time it sounded more or less like a male.  
  
"Vinnie.."  
  
The squeak made itself known again, before Vincent's pale and scarred body felt a light weight settled itself on the bed he was lying on, right next to his now bare feet. Yuffie stared at the raven-haired man sleeping, with a strangely angelic look to his otherwise cold features. She remembered how the doctor ordered her to stay in bed and rest, but she was hell-bent on looking after Vincent. She looked down to her side, to the clean and sterile white dressing the doctors had wrapped around the wound. It looked serious, but in truth, it was only shallow. Looking back up to Vincent's face, Yuffie felt overwhelmingly curious. Of course she wondered about "down there", but that was the little kid speaking. The real curiosity came from her memories.  
  
-Flashback-  
  
The odd warmth, and the steady beat. The strong, discreetly muscled wall that had guarded the seemingly cold heart, all these years. It was as if this strange barrier was a warm, protective blanket, that had seemed to have been neglected. She felt her arms getting heavy. She wanted to place her arms around the warmth.. To nuzzle her face in the nook of the barrier's neck.. To feel the tender, loving embrace that she longed for, since she was a child..  
  
-Present-  
  
Yuffie quickly dismissed the troubling thoughts of her last meeting with Vincent. She reached over to his delicate face, and gently touched the side, with her hand. She felt that same warmth. Overwhelmed with emotion, Yuffie threw her arms about Vincent's neck, and held him close.  
  
"Vinnie.. Wake up.."  
  
Yuffie choked, trying to hold back the tears threatening to flood from her tightly closed eyes.  
  
Vincent was tired. His limbs ached, and he didn't want to open his eyes. He could hear people speaking, but he felt as if his eyes were held down by bricks. A short while after, he felt a foreign presence pull his vulnerable form towards it, as if it was a child hugging a long-lost doll. Then, he almost wretched, upon hearing the atrocious nickname. He dismissed it, and realized who the new presence was.  
  
"Yuffie.."  
  
Vincent croaked, from a very sore throat.  
  
"Vinnie? Vincent! You woke up! You son of a bitch, you had me worried sick!"  
  
Yuffie quickly let go of him, and wiped her eyes on her glove.  
  
"Are you alright?"  
  
Vincent croaked again, his weary eyes immediately darting to her wounded side.  
  
"I'm fine. The doc patched me up. No big problem. The real question is, are -you- alright?"  
  
Yuffie poked his chest, upon asking.  
  
"Tired. Other than that, just fine."  
  
Vincent replied, rubbing his eyes with his knuckles.  
  
A knock hammered on the door, impatiently, before the door-knob twisted, and a doctor and a female nurse let themselves in.  
  
"Ah, Vincent. I see you've woken up. How are you both doing?'  
  
The doctor asked, while the nurse hurried over to Yuffie and inspected the dressings on her side.  
  
"I'm alright."  
  
Vincent said, amongst a yawn.  
  
"Ditto."  
  
Yuffie said, waiting for the nurse to finish her poking and prodding.  
  
After a checking up on his patients, the doctor and his nurse left, leaving the two alone again.  
  
"Yuffie.. About before. I'm sorry I didn't follow you straight away."  
  
Vincent didn't expect her to accept his apology. She'd blow up at him, like she usually did.  
  
"Its fine, Vinnie. At least you came when you did, right?"  
  
Yuffie chirped, cheerfully. Needless to say, Vincent didn't expect that. But he sensed something had changed in Yuffie. Something..  
  
Kaiki-Chan's last note! : Thank-you for all the positive reviews! ^_^ Special thanks to Diathorn and Casamaw, from their stories that gave me inspiration in my hour of need. Arigatou, and review! (Gomen, for the time it took me to upload a new chapter. I recently broke up with my boyfriend that I felt really strongly for, which served as a lack of inspiration, and a bad case of mushy-romantic-writer's block.) 


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